Help your birds with water

It’s summertime and the living’s not easy, especially for birds without water.

Do all your avian friends a big favor and make sure there’s plenty of fresh, clean water around your place during these scalding hot days. (I’m told some birds are using pot holders to pull up the worms.)

I keep a concrete birdbath filled and also have several small dishes of water available on my back deck. The birdbath is in the shade of an ancient oak tree, so it is a particular favorite of the birds. I also have hanging feeders with sunflower seeds, so my property is a full-service eatery for the birds.

My resident deer take occasional sips from the birdbath and, in the evening, I have a gray fox who likes to jump up and lap from the bath. All in all, it is a very popular spot for the local wildlife.

I have friends who have barn swallows around their property, and they make sure there is an occasional patch of wet ground where the birds can pick up mud to build their nests. This requires a tolerance to mud being daubed along overhanging eves and in the nooks and crannies on the outside of the house. But it sure makes things easier for the birds.

Don’t forget, make sure there’s plenty of water for birds at your abode. It’ll make their living much easier.